Marines crack down on trail trespassers

Mountain biker Damian Hiley was hours into a Saturday ride on a West Sycamore Canyon trail in Scripps Ranch — one he’s been excited to try out for some time — when he and his cycling group came upon a man standing in the middle of the trail, a gun at his hip.

“At first I thought they were looking for someone or that it was a police raid,” he said. “I was blown away when they told us we had stepped into the eastern boundary of the (Marine Corps Air Station Miramar) base.”

/ Damian Hiley

A group of Marines confiscate bicycles from a group of mountain bikers who said they weren't aware they had trespassed onto base.

A group of Marines confiscate bicycles from a group of mountain bikers who said they weren't aware they had trespassed onto base. (/ Damian Hiley)

Hiley and his group were escorted around a bend where six to eight Marines in vests and flight suits stood next to a pile of bikes. The Marines explained the riders were being ticketed for trespassing on federal land and that their bicycles were being confiscated.

Marines issued tickets to 50 people for trespassing and impounded 45 bikes and three motorcycles over the weekend, said 1st Lt. Matthew Gregory, the base’s public affairs officer.

Gregory said the base has diligently worked to inform hikers and mountain bikers about off-limits areas, slowly escalating over months from giving warnings to impounding bicycles. Roaming around the east side of base can be dangerous, Gregory said, since gun ranges where more than 9,000 Marines go for annual rifle and pistol qualifications are in the area.

“There is a very real safety hazard for anyone that may come onto the federal property, and the trails in question place those who trespass onto the base in potentially life-threatening danger,” Gregory said.

Gregory said signs and warnings are posted across the property, but Hiley said his group didn’t see any when they crossed into base property from Santee.

“What’s really upsetting for us is that there are really no signs,” he said. “As first-time riders on that trail, we had no idea we were on (base.)”

Hiley said the Marines told them ignorance is no excuse. All the riders got a ticket and may have to pay a fine, depending on what a judge decides on their assigned court date, which could be four to six weeks away. The group was told they would get their bikes back after the ticket was handled.

Gregory said a judge can choose to dismiss a ticket or assign a fine, depending on the circumstances.

Hiley’s group had no choice but to hike more than two miles back to their cars — in cycling shoes. They took a different route back, and ended up passing signs that read, “Keep Out.” If similar signs had been placed where they crossed into base, they would have been hard to miss, he said.

/ Damian Hiley

Damian Hiley said his group didn't spot any signs on their way into base, but when they took a different route back to their cars, they saw these.

Damian Hiley said his group didn't spot any signs on their way into base, but when they took a different route back to their cars, they saw these. (/ Damian Hiley)

Ben Stone, a San Diego Mountain Biking Organization board member, called the trails in Sycamore Canyon “historic.” He said people have been riding them for decades, but that doesn’t make them legal. The organization spent months warning hikers and mountain bikers that Marine officials were planning to start ticketing and confiscating bikes, and posted maps of the boundaries.

Stone said the County of San Diego spent years trying to negotiate access to the property, but each time, the deal fell through.

After years of failed negotiations, Stone said he doesn’t think the solution is legalization of the canyon trails. Instead, his organization is working to piece together a trail that would circumvent the base, although it’s years in the making since it would require land purchases and working with current land owners.

The mountain biking group will be discussing the plan at a meeting at 6 p.m. on Feb. 1 at 8148 Mercury Court.